Tony grinned, his entire demeanor going soft as he looked at her. Basil had seen that look before—his own parents loved him that much and fuck, he missed them. It also made something ugly rise in his chest, because he was pretty sure no one had ever looked at Derek like that. Not once.
‘Derek was smiling when he came into work today. He wouldn’t tell me why, but I have a feeling I know,’ Tony told him.
Basil licked his lips and debated about keeping it a secret, but he thought about all the ways Derek had been forced to keep himself a secret from the world. His formative years had been shoved into a box and locked away, and he couldn’t bring himself to do that, even if this ended up being nothing. ‘You’re probably right. We had a good time last night.’
‘He said you went to his apartment,’ Tony said, and there was a look of significance in his face that Basil didn’t understand. His confusion must have been apparent, because Tony went on, ‘He doesn’t let people in his apartment. Only Sam, sometimes Sage. No one else.’
That hit Basil like a physical blow. He didn’t understand Derek’s trauma—not completely, not the way he wished he did—but he could understand the impact of Tony’s statement. ‘I don’t know what to say.’
Tony smiled. ‘Don’t let it put pressure on you. He won’t break if it doesn’t work out. I just want you to know that it meant something to him.’
‘I know,’ Basil told him, because that, at least, he was aware of. There was no other way to interpret the way Derek talked to him after, and the way he held him. There was no way to misinterpret the gentle love-making in the morning, or the shower, or the sweet way he poured him shitty cereal and made stale coffee in his tiny six-cup coffee maker. It was something more than a fling, and not quite love, but it could get there if he let it.
‘He’s serious about you,’ Tony said. ‘It might not seem like it, he’s shy and scared, but he’s trying. He would have taken sign for Jasmine eventually, but you made him want it more.’
Basil absently rubbed his fingers over his tattoo and considered what that meant, too. ‘He makes me want to try.’
‘May I?’ Tony asked, then pointed at Basil’s arm. Basil offered it up, and didn’t flinch when Tony brushed his thick, calloused fingers over the design there. ‘It’s not finished.’
Basil couldn’t help his laugh, mostly in wonder at howall the artists at the shop seemed to just instinctively know it wasn’t finished. ‘No, not yet.’
Tony grinned at him. ‘It’s beautiful. It suits you.’
Basil felt himself blush because it did, but it was strange to have someone else notice it and understand it without really knowing him as a person. Then he realized if this worked out, if he and Derek made something of all this, Tony eventually would know him. Just like the others would, because they were Derek’s family. The thought caused a slight rise in his anxiety, because they were all hearing. Tony and Katherine knew sign for their daughter, and most of the others knew how to understand the few things the baby wanted, but that was it. And he didn’t see the same drive in them that Derek had. There was no motivation to try.
And the thought of that level of communication barrier made his stomach twist uncomfortably. He didn’t want to speak, he never would want that, but he’d lived that life before. And maybe they wouldn’t be cruel the way Chad and his friends had been, but there would be a wall between them, and he couldn’t cross it on his own.
‘Are you okay?’ Tony asked.
Basil affected a smile. ‘Fine,’ he lied. It was probably obvious—he was shit at hiding the truth from his face—but he couldn’t bring himself to talk about it just yet. Not with this man he hardly knew, and not without knowing what the future held for him and Derek.
Derek: Any chance you want to change our lesson into a date? My last appointment should be done around four, and I was thinking we could go into Denver and have dinner. We can work on restaurant signs, then make out in my car.
Basil: Blushing.
Derek: Is that a yes?
Basil: I’m work close but maybe after. Close tonight eight.
Derek: What food do you feel like eating? I’ll make us a reservation.
Basil: You decides. Surprise me good thing.
Derek: Prepare to be blown away. Then maybe just blown.
Basil jumped away from the counter when he felt his sister smack his side, and he realized she’d been reading over his shoulder. His face blushed so hot he felt a little dizzy and he pulled his phone away from her.
‘Dirty,’ she signed, waggling her brows.
‘Do you mind?’ he demanded, his hands slapping together in more embarrassment than anger.
‘I’m happy for you. Finally you’re getting laid!’ She moved to the side of the counter where she was working on trimming one of their rose deliveries and she picked up her shears with one hand. ‘I like him.’
Basil bit his lip and rolled his eyes up toward the ceiling, taking a breath for strength. ‘Me too, but I don’t…I don’t know.’
Setting the shears down, she leaned on the counter. ‘Don’t ruin it before it starts. I like him, and you like him.’
Basil pursed his lips. ‘All his friends are hearing. His family. The whole shop is hearing.’
